American Black Film Festival
Miami, Florida, U.S. | |
Founded | 1997 |
---|---|
Founded by | Jeff Friday |
Most recent | June 14-18, 2023 |
Language | English |
Website | www |
The American Black Film Festival (ABFF), originally called the Acalpulco Black Film Festival, is an independent
History
Founding: "Because Hollywouldn't"
The first Acapulco Black Film Festival was held in June 1997.
Lewis, CEO of
Acapulco Black Film Festival: 1997-2001
In its first years, the festival was held in
In 1998, HBO established the HBO Short Film Award to be presented at the ABFF to honor works in the genre of short film.[8] HBO thus became a major partner and supporter of the ABFF, along with UniWorld and the Black Filmmakers Foundation. 1999 saw the festival’s first Trailblazer award for significant contributions to Black screen media.[9] This award would remain a consistent part of the festival until 2002. In 2000, the Lincoln Filmmaker’s Trophy was established. This award was one of only two honors, along with the HBO Short Film Award, that would survive the festival’s move to Florida in 2002.
Early hosts and presenters included
Aside from awards, the festival in its early incarnations had seminars, actors’ training workshops and meet-and-greets, all with the aim of strengthening the skills and networks of black filmmakers, actors and actresses, and screenwriters.
Changes from 2002-Present
The year 2002 saw many changes for the film festival. Jeff Friday took over execution of the festival, which he renamed the American Black Film Festival (also abbreviated as ABFF). The festival was moved to South Beach, Florida.
Since its transformation in 2002, the ABFF has drawn new corporate sponsors (including Grey Goose, Ford, NBC, CBS, and Nickelodeon) and a dramatically increased attendance.[3]
The first Black Movie Awards to be televised were in 2005, with a ceremony hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, which was aired on Turner Network Television;[10] the 2006 ceremony was hosted by Tyler Perry.[11]
The Festival stayed in Florida until 2007 when it was moved to
Festival
Events
Typically, there will be an opening ceremony, either featuring a big-name movie or an award presentation. The following days will include screenings of other films, actors’ and directors’ workshops, and symposiums. Each year, the festival concludes with the main awards ceremony.[12] Hosts of this ceremony have included: Robert Townsend and Shaun Robinson,[13] Anthony Anderson,[14] and Niecy Nash.[15]
Programming Initiatives
The festival has five objectives, or "Programming Initiatives" [16] which are:
- Education in the form of programs to teach and help develop the skills of African-Americans in film.
- Artistic Expression through screening of African-American films.
- Collaboration between members of the black cinema industry thereby strengthening the industry as a whole.
- Access to "industry insiders" for up-and-coming filmmakers and producers.
- Recognition of outstanding work on the part of Black independent filmmakers.
Influence
Numerous Hollywood insiders, including director
References
- ^ Jet. Johnson Publishing Company. 31 October 2005. pp. 32–35. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
- ^ "Founder". ABFF. Archived from the original on May 22, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2012.
- ^ a b c Morales, Wilson (2010-04-05). "ABFF Founder Jeff Friday Speaks About Upcoming Festival". BV on Movies. Archived from the original on 2018-10-05. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ Crawford-Tichawonna, Nicole (2006). "Because 'Hollywouldn't': The American Black Film Festival Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary" The Crisis 113 (4): 40-41.
- ^ Fink, Rob. "Actors and Actresses." Encyclopedia of African American History. Vol. 1. 2009.
- ^ Duckett, Josie W. (1998). "The Acapulco Black Film Festival" PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art 20 (1): 44-47.
- ^ Columnist. (1997). "Acapulco Film Festival". Jet 92 (11): 39
- ^ "HBO Short Film Award Competition Opens Film Life's 8th Annual American Black Film Festival in South Beach, July 14–18; - Five aspiring filmmakers to vie for $20,000 grand prize to be awarded by HBO at festival's closing ceremonies -. - Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. 2004-06-29. Archived from the original on 2016-01-14. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ Columnist. (1999). "Advertising Pioneer Byron Lewis Lauded At Acapulco Black Film Festival; Pam Grier And Samuel L. Jackson Named Career Achievers".Jet 96 (8): 24
- ^ "2005 Black Movie Awards". NPR. October 18, 2005. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
- ^ "Breaking News - Tyler Perry to Host Film Life's 2006 Black Movie Awards - a Celebration of Black Cinema: Past, Present & Future, Premiering Wednesday, OcT. 18, on TNT". The Futon Critic. August 31, 2006. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2011-02-13.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "American Black Film Festival : Press release". Abff.com. July 8, 2002. Archived from the original on 2012-05-19. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ "American Black Film Festival : Press release". Abff.com. July 19, 2005. Archived from the original on 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ "American Black Film Festival : Press release". Abff.com. August 11, 2008. Archived from the original on 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ "American Black Film Festival : Programming Initiatives". Abff.com. 2012-01-20. Archived from the original on 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
- ^ "American Black Film Festival : About - Testimonials". Abff.com. 2012-01-20. Archived from the original on 2012-09-10. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
Further reading
- Allyson Nadia Field, Uplift Cinema: The Emergence of African-American Film and the Possibility of Black Modernity. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2015.